


the moment before connection

by litra



Series: Episode snippets [3]
Category: For the People (TV 2018)
Genre: Episode: 18 Miles Outside of Roanoke, Extended Scene, Gen, Inner Dialogue
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-13
Updated: 2019-01-13
Packaged: 2019-10-09 05:53:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 427
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17401256
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/litra/pseuds/litra
Summary: The minutes in Judge Burns office before Kate tells her story.





	the moment before connection

 

Judge Burns walked out of his office, leaving Kate with Sandra Bell. The other woman was silent. 

Kate stared at the corner of the judges desk. There was a cup of pens there. black ball point pens, all the same brand, and not the cheap bulk kind, these were the kind that cost 2.99 each. There were nine pens in the cup. She wondered if any of them had been used before. There was a matching pen, number ten, lined up next to the blotter, perfectly perpendicular to the edge of the desk. This was clearly a working office but it was also neat, orderly and elegant. Kate respected Judge burn for that. 

She knew he was right. 

A part of her knew that Sandra was right too, from her own limited perspective. Sandra was an idealist. She couldn't see the bigger picture. She couldn't see that while her client was trying to do good, the government stopping the program wasn't her call to make.

Kate didn't know if the program was deporting people, but she knew that the stated goals were to catch federal offenders in promotion of the anti-terrorism act. Neither of them were anti-terrorism specialists. Miss Bell couldn't argue that the government was wasting it's time. She couldn't argue that this program was doing more harm than good because for all they knew, this program had stopped a dozen 9-11s before they had a chance to happen.

There were people whose job it was to make sure the system worked. Sandra Bell was passionate and courageous and determined, but she didn't trust the system. That was the difference between them. Kate believed in the system. It was flawed and there were loopholes and it didn't work for all people every time. It had been created by people and all systems created by humans were bound to have flaws, but if they threw it out, then all they'd be left with was the rule of might makes right, and they were better than that.

Kate just had to show Sandra what they both knew. 

She thought about every interaction they'd had, from that first conversation outside the courthouse doors to present. It was clear Sandra couldn't see her as anything other then the enemy. Kate needed to humanize herself. 

As soon as the thought crossed her mind she knew what she needed to say. A part of her raged against it, pulling in over the old pain. But no, this was more important then her ego.

Kate took a breath and said, "Richard Prince."


End file.
